Nov 30, 2004 06:36 PM
2318 Views
(Updated Dec 01, 2004 07:30 AM)
In the good old days of 70's and 80's, all we had was the DD staple diet of Magic Lamp and then the Disney hour. fcourse the cable bought in more like Giant Robot, Famous Five, I dream of Jeannie etc but there were not much cartoons beyond Mickey Mouse & Donald Duck's till the last decade or so.
Thanks to Hollywood I am reliving my childhood thru cartoons. Those crazy and zany toons, full of mischief & colour, bring out that certain madness and that hidden urge of being naughty and not so sane in oneself.
Off late there has been a plethora of cartoons and real good ones - from Lion King, Prince of Egypt, Monsters Inc to Finding Nemo, Powerpuff girls, Shrek and even a cartoon sequel in Shrek 2 (Ofcourse Toy Story 2 was first here).
The Cast of Cartoons ☺
Oscar (Will Smith) a smooth fast-talking small fish (fish even resembles Will Smith) who thinks he is a nobody and wants to make it big. Oscar works in a Whale wash service (Ha ha like a car wash) - with a load of assistants they provide complete solutions for Whale cleaning (NGC are u listening !!).
Wide eyed, Angie (Renee Zellweger) who works as a receptionist at the whale washers, madly loves Oscar but is often referred to as a friend by him.
The Don (Robert De Niro) the big shark who wants his 2 sons to control his mob empire (move aside Godfather).
Lenny (Jack Black), the younger son of the Don having a very big soft heart which cannot even hurt a worm. OK OK he is a vegetarian - he lacks the killer attitude of Sharks unlike his elder brother.
Lola ( Angeline Jolie), the sexy seductress always present at the right place wooing ''big somebodies''. Oscar drools over this beautiful fish.
The Cartoon Plot
Set in an ocean reef reminiscent of Shanghai at night with huge Billboards and electronic signs. Coca Cola is in full glow and must have sponsored this movie - btw I am curious which fish wants to drink underwater. ♫♫ Hey buddy its a cartoon and no one minds such things, so stop being a rationalist ♫♫.
Oscar hates his amusing job of cleaning Whales and their tongues and always curses himself of being a nobody. He dreams of having his own penthouse and making it very big someday.
Meanwhile he has a debt of 5000 CLAMS to be paid to the owner of his whalewash service. Angie brings her grandmothers pink pearl for Oscar which he can pawn and repay his debt (Poora filmy oops cartoon). But our hero bets the whole money on a horse which loses and he lands in a soup.
On the other side of reef Frank, Lenny's brother wants him to develop the killer instinct and be ferocious. Circumstances lead Frank to chase Oscar and during such a chase an anchor strikes Frank and leaves him dead. This scene actually is hilarious especially the last words.
Frank (dying): I am feeling cold.
Lenny: We are supposed to after all we are cold blooded creatures !!
Frank dies and Lenny feeling guilty runs away. Oscar makes it big and becomes THE SHARK SLAYER of the reef. He becomes a huge hero, a somebody and Lola is besides him. Meanwhile The Don is looking for his sons's killer and searching for Lenny. For more watch the cartoooon ◄►
♣ Will Angie ever get her true love or Lola will play foul ?
♠ Will Lenny ever return back to his father ?
♦ What will be the fate of reef when the mob attacks ?
♥ What about Oscar - can he escape the wrath of the Don ?
The Cartoon Analysis
The movie and the frames are good to the extent required but what the film lacks is a soul, an emotion like Lion King or Shrek. The plot when compared to Finding Nemo lacks the depth and imagination. The music is passe and some characters like Lola are just a burden.
The underwater caricatures could have been better presented though there are flashes of brilliance. The children will still adore the cute Shark Lenny and also the funny Oscar. There are some hilarious sequences which will have u in splits. There is reference to Titanic and that nude painting of Kate Winslet figures in Don's office which itself is possibly in Titanic!!
All in all Kids will enjoy it in theatres but on the other hand The Incredibles is coming in a week or two. Shark Tale can be viewed in VCD/DVD.
PS - Zinnia Debut's refers to my daughter who is almost 2 years old and it was her 1st movie in theatre Fame Adlabs
